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PGCE (Irish Medium - Primary)

The Post Graduate Certificate in Education is a one-year full-time course leading to full recognition as a teacher by the Department of Education. It is taught substantially through the medium of Irish and is intended particularly for graduates who wish to teach in Irish-medium primary schools.

Aim of the Course

The general aim of the course is to provide students with the opportunity to:

  • develop a range of professional competences
  • engage in informed debate about major issues in education and training
  • reflect in depth on theory/practice relationships within professional contexts
  • keep abreast of research, innovation and developments in education in general and Irish-medium education in particular
  • develop reseach skills.

Course Structure

From September 2006 the PGCE (Irish-medium) course has been structured in modules in line with the QAA Qualifications Framework for England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In order to successfully complete the PGCE (Irish-medium) course, students must pass the following three modules:

Module 320MPS401 School-based work

Module 320MPS402 Learning and Teaching in the Irish-medium Primary School

Module 320MPS403 Perspectives on the Primary Curriculum

Two of the modules, 320MPS402 and 320MPS403, are credited at Masters level each worth 20 M-level credit points. Module 320MPS401 is credited at Honours level and is worth 20 H-level credit points.

Course Content

The course content is based on the requirements of the Revised Northern Ireland Curriculum and students have the opportunity to gain meaningful insights into educational issues relevant to immersion education. The course is of thirty-six weeks duration, of which some eighteen weeks are spent on practical teaching experience in schools. Students will spend two blocks of School Experience in an Irish-medium school and one block in an English-medium school.

It is recommended that applicants applying for this course have a high level of competence in oral and written Irish. The selection prodedure involves an interview and a written task.

For further information and an application form please contact the Admissions Office. The deadline for applications is Friday 27th February 2009.

The Irish Medium Team Leader is Dr Gabrielle Nig Uidhir. 

Anyone requiring additional information is invited to contact Dr Gabrielle Nig Uidhir (Irish Medium Primary PGCE Team Leader) by telephone on 90268202, or by e-mail.